Insigne thread.
Not sold on him. Unpopular opinion? I think we've given him enough time to show that he's a net negative given that he's taking up a DP slot and the team looks worse with him in the lineup.
The problem when the president buys a "big name" instead of letting the manager choose someone.
MLS is a tough, physical league, that emphasizes speed, and features plastic fields, grueling travel, extreme weather, and incompetent refs. - NK Toronto
Why would anyone be sold on him so far ? This is common sense - clearly Berna has been the much more influential signing so far — we paid the guy to be one of the best players in the league and he simply hasn’t shown that yet - why would anyone be sold on him? If he’s not playing at least 24 games this year and ending up at a 10G and 10A kind of season than he simply isn’t worth the DP slot we are paying him for - we fixed the back line, we need someone up front to make things happen. I get that we need a “scorer” but Berna has figured out how to link up with Lareya to make things happen - Insigne has done what exactly to make everyone around him better ?
Has he played 90 total minutes this season? Has he been fit for any but the first 30? I know we're fucking awful today but it's a stretch to say we've given enough time to a player whose played maybe 90 minutes over 3 games and been fit for 30 of them
He's a great player. The players around him aren't as good. He's played almost no time, less than 100 minutes as of the timing of this post. You need to calm down about this my guy, we've heard you. The problem with this team is Bob Bradley and those who empower him.Originally Posted by Oldtimer
should be playing in the midfield in this team...there just isnt enough quality to get enough balls to him and bernardeschi...they cant be both playing very high
Yeh, not time for this discussion yet, and certainly not during this game....
And that goal there is the answer for me....
There's a goal. Let's have a Mista value dollar to him so far.
That said I wouldn't wish his bad luck he's had on anyone.
Still, he wears the contract he signed and that effects the balance of this team.
AND furthermore, why does our back line look like this is preseason needing time to gel? These aren't the kids we played in the last couple years.
FORMER FULL TIME KOOL-AID DRINKER
A goal and (not that it's saying much) by far the best Toronto fc player on the pitch today the first time this season he plays more than half an hour. Maybe we shouldn't write him off just yet
I don't think it's him, I think it's Bob's system.
We have too many players who have specific weaknesses in their game, quite a few of them involving defense. The system has to adjust to the players in this league.
Yup. That's how I see it
Bob has us set up to fail or at least make it as hard as possible to get results.
I’m not sold. I also think the combination of LI and Berna as DP’s is kind of stupid. Both those guys have average pace and it doesn’t exactly feel like much synergy when they play together.
I do wonder if a better coach could get more out of this team and LI in particular. Bradley’s football is too narrow minded and rigid.
I think Insigne was the wrong DP, found in the wrong way.
However, now he's ours. The next big problems came after the signing: not finding him the proper supporting cast, and not coaching and playing the team in a way that gets the most out of him and everyone else.
Against a team like Philly, you see there's a MASSIVE void in the centre of TFC's midfield and front line. MAK is incredibly hot and cold, and not very fast. The fact that he was not pulled after his giveaway for the fourth goal, after a number of previous similar screw-ups, shows us that we're incredibly weak in that area, and/or that BB is blind. (Or is BB blinded by his belief in himself?)
Osorio is very good, but he's never been very fast, and now he's 30. Seeing him trying to track back on the third goal against was telling. He should be playing with a couple of young dynamic players up the centre, not MAK and...
Michael Bradley. Enough said. He would also be OK with a couple of young fast workhorses around him, but not with the above two.
The even bigger problem is at centre forward of course. Trying to put Insigne up there against a team like Philly is a testament to failure. Of course he didn't spend much time at CF in the first half, but that left a big void up front. Almost zero pressure on Philly's defence helped them to control the game all over the park.
Can they please hire a running coach for Perruzza (and others)? It's amazing to see someone run so un-athletically at age 22. It affects everything he's trying to do up there, and again applies minimal pressure on the opposing defence, while opening no space for Insigne and Berna. Our other young backup forward, Ayo, has also become very unathletic. You see plenty of young cheap forwards around MLS: even if they aren't incredibly gifted, they create pressure and havoc in the middle, open up room for everyone else, and get into spaces where they can walk in or tap in a goal.
I can't even remember who our top centre forwards were supposed to be this season. Wasn't it Diomande and someone else? What a freaking disaster.
TFC's has lots of talented players, especially Insigne and Berna, but too many of them are best on the sides of the pitch. We have depth there and can make meaningful subs. But with the spine mostly empty, and no quick movement up or down the middle, it becomes quite easy to defend against the wing play, and to put too much pressure on our central defence.
Coello and others offered some meaningful contributions in the middle. There is hope, if BB can see what is needed, and if they have a bit more turnover in the summer.
All that being said, Insigne had two other glorious chances that a player on his salary NEEDS to bury. That would have totally changed the complexion of the game. Perhaps a bit of rust after his layoff? I hope so.
I'm NOT saying that Insigne isn't a good player, he is. A very good player.
Bob Bradley has a fixed system, if he's allowed to choose his own players he gets guys to fit his system and that's how he gets a winning side.
The problem is that no way does Insigne fit his system. He was brought in for marketing reasons and that's on Manning. (Berna was also brought in for marketing reasons but he does fit Bob's system).
I'm not sold on this experiment. Either you build everything around Insigne (including a team and a coach that can work with him) or you replace Insigne with someone who fits the system.
Roster construction is number one in a salary cap league. That's why we've struggled post Bez, we have essentially a marketing guy (Manning) making roster decisions.
So time to get some value for Insigne by selling him, I've seen enough.
Last edited by Oldtimer; 04-23-2023 at 11:47 AM.
Some here might prefer to go for the option of keeping Insigne and dumping Bradley and Manning. I acknowledge that might also work. However be prepared for 2 more years of pain as the roster gets rebuilt around Insigne and yet another coach's vision. Getting rid of Insigne is faster and there are DPs who would fit Bradley's system.
Last edited by Oldtimer; 04-23-2023 at 11:57 AM.
I think the big issue here is that a huge chunk of our decisions seem to be based on familiarity / marketing (family ties? *gasp*) rather than a true assessment of todays MLS and what it takes to win.
At the risk of stating the obvious, I am not convinced that Bob Bradley is a winner in todays league. The whole setup feels like a cliche movie where the band gets back together and does it one more time.
Don’t care about splitting hairs of Manning vs Bradley responsibilities and for what signing. Manning is on replacement coach number 2, he succeeds or dies here. Bob is presiding over a second straight season of poor performance and looks very inflexible and pretty tone deaf.
They both have enough hair on them where this either turns around or get pink slips. Pretty simple IMO.
You're whole post was excellent, you summed up many of our problems well.
I am of the opinion that Insigne isn't even close to our problems , we watched last night as our midfield was out run and simply could not move the ball up the field to Insigne and Berna when possessing the ball. How do we get midfield pieces ? Would there be any takers for Oso's contract in the league? Yes I am suggesting simply give him away. Next I don't see Michael Bradley here next year, can we somehow mutually terminate his contract? This will free up some much needed money and a DP spot.
So much this. Our central midfield is just not quick or dynamic enough, and Bernadeschi and Insigne are both exceptional players within the limits of their athleticism. Neither has the pace Seba had at his peak, so they can't tear teams apart single-handedly. They're just exceptional TEAM players, but we don't have a cohesive team, because the midfield can't compete, not in this system.
I don't think a new manager has to take two years to fix anything; if they're willing to pay for Martino or someone of that ilk -- a world-class manager, basically -- they'll get an immediate bump (the new manager bump) because that manager will simplify what they're doing and spent a period "purging" the over-instruction and mandated shit, before expanding outward tactically to accomodate the best of the players he have.
He won't come in with a fixed "system" and demand everyone play to it. That keeps getting shown up as a mistake again and again in the modern era.
There's a common thread between great managers and it's probably one of the elements Tim Bezbachenko recognized in Wilfried Nancy: their players would walk through walls for them, would go to battle for them. I don't get that sense from Bob. I just don't.
No they don't.
Bad joke. I'll see myself out
Just curious but does Insigne even want to stay past this season? I haven't read anything to imply one way or the other but with the Euro next year is there a need to play for a European side to play for Italy? Even if it's not a requirement if things aren't going well for player or club it would be a convenient way to save face for all??
I love the absurdity of social media… Lollo and Pep… related?
Check out this tweet at [URL]https://twitter.com/aXtrips/status/1368469560043601929[/URL]
I have never been sold on him. It's because of his deal, which does and will warp everything.
I thought the rumours of his signing had to be wrong, because it just couldn’t be true, they couldn’t possibly be committing $75M to anybody, let alone somebody this unknown ... could they? (Not looking to re-have the debate about how famous he is.. he is well known to Serie A followers, absolutely, but that's it, and even then, it's players from the big 3 clubs that really move the marketing needle in Serie A… if you disagree, fine, it's a free country)
Even if he is a fine player for a year or two, as is likely - but hasn’t really happened yet, for a bunch of reasons, sure- I mean, how hard is that to find? He will never be worth even 20% of what they paid for him.
Which creates problems for the manager. Which creates problems for the player. Which creates problems for teammates. Which creates problems for all of us, who get to think about what else they could have done with the money…
I am sure he is a fine person, a good footballer, I hope he comes to like it here. I know he is on the winning end of the single worst contract in MLS history, one that is so bad that I can’t even see second place in the distance from it.
Last edited by ensco; 04-29-2023 at 07:32 AM.
“What the world needs is more geniuses with humility; there are so few of us left.”
Couldn't agree more.
This signing speaks volumes about the limited size of the TFC fan base. Insigne was signed to sell tickets to the casual fan and create excitement around the club. This was never about sound roster building.
I dont think I can unsee this.
Call me crazy but for 75 million dollars we could (probably) be rid of the argos once and for all, MLSE could move them elsewhere and BMO field could transform into what it should be: the true SSS for the nats (men’s and women’s) as well as TFC plus Toronto’s women’s team. Maybe I’m petty but that’s what I’d spend it on.
You expect too much from this ownership, they have even less incentive to spend money going forward if the Apple deal is a success.
TFC is not even the third wheel, just being kept around because of MLS franchise valuations, otherwise not that far off from the Argo's.
Last edited by Richard; 04-29-2023 at 01:58 PM.
Daje Napoli! Daje!… C’mon Napoli! C’mon!
Party will be delayed for a few days. Nice tying goal by Salernitana towards the end of the game.
I have to be honest the player that i saw on the field last night was full of fire and compete, a great choice for the captain arm band. He also supported his team mates when some of the service to him wasn't quite right. I was not overly impressed with new York but having Insigne on the left and Fede on the right with a target potential in the middle, changed the game completely. His trajectory here in the fans eyes will only go up with a few more solid outings.
He was really engaging to get the crowd into the game last night, especially around the 88th minute.
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